A number of devices are available for holding tools, instruments and equipment having handles. For example Angelastro, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,170,333, incorporated herein by reference, discloses an elastic band with a twist for garden tools such as shovels, hoes and household devices as brooms. Other devices use spring clips or the like to grip handles of implements and hold them in an upright fashion, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,165,550 for a mop holder.
There are often problems related to ease of: attachment of devices to handles; engagement with holder between uses and disengagement from holder during use.
For toothbrushes there are additional unique requirements. The first that most holders accommodate toothbrushes such that the head of the brush rests on the holder itself. This creates two problems: first, liquid residue from the brush puddles on the holder, keeping some bristles moist which shortens the effective life of the bristles--they get too soft. This puddle of moisture provides a support medium for micro-organism growth. Sweeteners found in most toothpastes as well as organic compounds found in saliva from the mouth offer nutrients for growing micro-organisms. Micro-organisms and food particles can come from the mouth of the user and from the surrounding air in the bathroom. Both can contribute to the growth of organisms and transmission of disease. Micro-organisms from the air or water may include bacteria, molds, mildew and viruses. U.S. Pat. No. 5,443,735 to Kirnbauer, et al. discusses growth of micro-organisms on filter media that arise from household water supplies.
To prevent contamination problems some inventions have built into the storage device or holder capability to disinfect brushes. In a pending U.S. patent application by John P. Arata (as reported in Inventor's Digest January/February, 1994 p. 30) uses ultraviolet light and a bactericide dispensing mechanism for each brush. This approach is expensive and requires specially grounded electrical sources which is not always available in older bathrooms. Use of bactericides also raises safety issues since toxic material could end up in people's mouths. A broad treatment of the art for antimicrobial compositions and some of the problems associated therewith may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,462,714 issued to R. Talwalker and S. Barve. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,995,509 Kornfeind presents an alternative, which is to make the storage device disposable. While this may be suitable in some instances it does not meet the need for many whose bathrooms are considered designer showplaces, and creates environmental issues.
A second problem with current practice is that drainage from the toothbrush accumulating on the support device, often runs down the inner surfaces of the holder and become encrusted thereon. This encrustation can be very difficult to remove under common cleaning practices. Kornfeind's U.S. Pat. No. 4,995,509 addresses this need also; but, again falls short for the reason cited above. U.S. Pat. No. 4,770,379 by Estvold also teaches a disposable toothbrush holder.
Returning to the first problem, some toothbrushes have an expanded portion to the handle which prevents it from going all the way down into a holder. See FIG. 1 of a toothbrush design by Acumen Co. Ltd. of Taiwan, a major supplier. However, the primary purpose of such expanded portion is to provide a grip, not to lift the brush higher in the holder. Furthermore, the expanded portion is not suitable for some because it does not fit into some toothbrush holders having smaller openings. Other examples of handle designs may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,272,784 by Levin and U.S. Pat. No. 5,305,491 by Hegemann showing a self adjusting three-headed toothbrush.
Many holder designs address ease-of-use and aesthetics but do not address cleaning and contamination problems. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,979,708 to Aoki et al. shows novel design features, but it is of no value in solving the aforementioned problems. Other examples of supports are: U.S. Pat. No. 4,973,018 to Agor; U.S. Pat. No. 5,313,684 to Fitjer and U.S. Pat. No. 4,995,511 to Evans which combines a toothbrush holder with a toothpaste holder.
While these problems have been described in relation to a toothbrush, there are similar problems with other devices including dental tools and instruments. U.S. Pat. No. 4,911,187 to Castillo shows a dental pick brush having a contoured handle for the stated purpose of ease of manipulation.
A problem of storing paint brushes is indicated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,072,904 to Taylor wherein the issue of draining of wet paint onto the handles is addressed. Taylor's solution is to hold the brushes horizontally. The solution of Hicks and Hodgins in U.S. Pat. No. 5,085,386 is to provide a holder which attaches to an open paint can thus being useful only during use, not during storage. Brushes and applicators used for applying cosmetics also presents a storage problem. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,107,984 to Weischoff, the end of an applicator sponge or brush is returned to a receptacle after use for storage in a case. The receptacle prevents loss of material to surroundings but does not aid in drying the applicator nor in preventing the growth of microorganisms.
While microbial contamination may not be a problem in some arts, ease of maintenance of holders and extension of life of tools, particularly brushes is a common problem. The solutions presented in the patent literature have various drawbacks.